The Willies | Page 9

the attendant couldn't help but be moved by her joy at seeing the
creature. To him it was just a fish. He'd certainly seen his share of them
before this job, but those were all in fishing nets. They were so rare
now, he was surprised there were even any left. This one in the water
wasn't from here: just to get one they had to buy it from some
American company who said they "made" them.
Connie gingerly held the fish out for the dolphin. It probed the offering
with its nose, but pushed it aside with enough force to make Connie
drop it in the water.
The attendant checked his watch. Strange, he thought, the dolphin
hasn't been fed. Why isn't it hungry?
Connie turned to wave at her husband, mouthing for the camera as she
pointed at the dolphin, "I'm-going-to-swim-with-it-now", though the
camera could have recorded her saying it. She breast-stroked out into
the water. The dolphin turned and circled around her. She dog-paddled,
and stretched out a hand to run it down the creature's smooth, wet side.
In response, it turned and bumped her with what she called a dolphin's
"nose" -- actually the long, round, white underbite of its chin.
"Ooh!" she said, startled by the force of the poke.
The attendant stood up from his chair. Something wasn't right.
Connie swam alongside the dolphin and reached out to hold onto it.
She squealed and laughed as they picked up speed. She raised an arm
and waved to her husband. The dolphin wiggled loose, disappearing
underwater. Connie searched the surface for any sign of it. Suddenly
she lifted out of the water, hoisted on the dolphin's nose. She screeched
as she vaulted through the air and splashed back into the water.
The attendant picked up the mobile phone next to him and dialled his

boss' number.
The dolphin seemed to be laughing, a staccato ee-ee-ee sound as it
swam close to Connie, letting her pet it. Then it gave her a peck on the
cheek, as if it knew how cute that was. Connie wrapped her arms as far
as she could around the dolphin to hug it. It swam with her holding on.
It tipped underwater, then came right back up to the surface. Connie
caught her breath and made excited sounds. The dolphin ee-ee-ee
laughed. It dipped again, and again they both laughed when they came
back up. Then it jumped high with her and took them both under.
And stayed under.
Connie's husband stood and used the camera's zoom lens to search for
her.
He saw nothing but water.
The attendant talked anxiously into the phone in machine-gun Spanish,
waving his free hand at the water.
After a few minutes, the dolphin broke the surface.
Alone.
It danced on its tail across the water. "Ee-ee-ee," it laughed at the men.
"Ee-ee-ee!"
~
"I'm sorry, I didn't know the panda would make such a mess," said the
little man, "A dolphin, eh? Well, I'll make sure there's nothing left of
it." He put the phone back into its cradle. Dressed as he always did at
home, in nothing but threadbare briefs and an undershirt that stretched
over his little round body, he moved through the cluttered apartment.
Its one room was completely dark except for the slash of light that tore
through the gap between his heavy curtains. From the bed on the other
side of the room, he picked up a pair of trousers and put them on. He

grabbed a shirt to wear from the nest of them on the floor.
He pulled a torn blue vinyl suitcase from his closet and emptied a
laundry hamper into it. He'd clean the clothes when he got to the hotel
in Central America.
He unlocked his gun cabinet, which stood against the wall like a shrine,
and selected the best weapon for the job.
And last, but not least, he packed his lucky parka. He wouldn't wear it,
but its lining would hide the weapon in his luggage. He considered that
lucky.

Chapter 4
Hugh lifted the plug in the kitchen sink, letting the murky dishwater
empty. He moved away slightly, distancing himself from the lewd
noises the water made as it spun down the drain. He picked up the last
glass from the dish rack and dried it with a dishtowel, then put it away
in a cupboard.
Ted spooned all the leftover Chinese food into a plastic container and
threw out the take-away boxes. Oswald usually cooked, but he'd been
in no shape for it tonight. Ted and Hugh managed to get him calmed
enough to go to bed only half an hour ago. It took something from one
of Oswald's old prescriptions to finally put him down.
"Drinks," said Ted. Hugh